Thursday, March 27, 2014

Religion -- The Epitome Of Horror

Sometimes I am wrenched away from my usual serenity by an image that defies belief. This happened to me recently while I was browsing the web in search of material for my blog. I found it, but I'm not sure I am happy about it. Wouldn't you know that it is particularly horrifying, and of course, it concerns religion.

In the above photo (taken in Saigon on June 11, 1963), Thich Quang Duc, age 67, is “protesting” by means of self-immolation. Duc was protesting against the Roman Catholic persecution of Buddhists by South Vietnam’s Ngo Dinh Diem’s Roman Catholic administration. The Catholic and corrupt regime had cracked down on practicing Buddhists by banning the flying of the traditional Buddhist flag; prohibiting Buddhists from exercising the same religious freedoms as Catholics; and the detainment of Buddhist monks and nuns. Ironically, in a land that was 95 percent Buddhist, Diem was the leader the United States financially and militarily supported as President of South Vietnam (1954-63) – obviously one of the many mistakes the United States made during war, and clearly one of the big reasons why the National Liberation Front (aka Vietcong) was able to gain support.--From Teach Not Preach

Now you'd think that I would want to maintain my hard won sense of serenity at all costs. To do that, I realize that I must avoid excessive tension and known stress related subjects. I guess I am just what they call a glutton for punishment since I often go out of my way to condemn the animalistic rage and the downright judgmental and horrific violence that radical religion engenders and condones.

Joke:Why can’t Jesus eat M & M’s? Answer: He has holes in his hands.

I read that in another entry in the same Teach Not Preach blog that I linked to above.

Is it funny?

I think so.

But the school's principal and its superintendent, during the meeting that the teacher who told the joke to his class was being reprimanded in, sternly told him that religion was entirely "off-limits."

So much for a sense of humor.

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Did You Know . . .?

Males receive, on average, 63 percent longer sentences than females for the exact same crime.

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HISTORICAL EVENT

On this day in 1998, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves use of the drug Viagra, an oral medication that treats impotence. Sildenafil, the chemical name for Viagra, is an artificial compound that was originally synthesized and studied to treat hypertension (high blood pressure) and angina pectoris (a form of cardiovascular disease). Chemists at the Pfizer pharmaceutical company found, however, that while the drug had little effect on angina, it could induce penile erections, typically within 30 to 60 minutes.

Viagra's massive success was practically instantaneous. In the first year alone, the $8-$10 pills yielded about a billion dollars in sales. To date, over 20 million Americans have tried it, and that number is sure to increase as the baby boomer population continues to age.

In physics, energy is one of the basic quantitative properties describing a physical system or object's state. Energy can be transformed (converted) among a number of forms that may each manifest and be measurable in differing ways. The law of conservation of energy states that the (total) energy of a system can increase or decrease only by transferring it in or out of the system.--Wikipedia

Michael York is an English actor. Following his role on British TV as Jolyon (Jolly) in The Forsyte Saga (1967), York made his film debut as Lucentio in Zeffirelli's The Taming of the Shrew (1967), then was cast as Tybalt in Zeffirelli's 1968 film adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. He also starred in the film, The Guru (1969). He played an amoral bisexual drifter in the film Something for Everyone (1970) opposite Angela Lansbury. He then went on to portray the bisexual Brian Roberts in Bob Fosse's film version of Cabaret (1972), opposite Liza Minnelli. In 1977, he reunited with Zeffirelli as John the Baptist in Jesus of Nazareth.

Elizabeth Mitchell is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Dr. Juliet Burke on ABC's TV series Lost and as FBI agent Erica Evans on V. She has starred in such films as The Santa Clause 2, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, and Gia. Mitchell currently co-stars in Eric Kripke's television series Revolution, airing on NBC.

David Janssen was an American film and television actor who is best known for his starring role as Dr. Richard Kimble in the television series The Fugitive (1963–1967). Janssen also had the title roles in three other series, Richard Diamond, Private Detective, Harry O, and O'Hara, U.S. Treasury.

Mariah Carey is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, and philanthropist. Born and raised on Long Island, New York, Carey came to prominence after releasing her self-titled debut studio album Mariah Carey in 1990; it went multiplatinum and spawned four consecutive number one singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart.

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Life is short and truth works far and lives long: let us speak the truth.--Arthur Schopenhauer

3 comments:

Dear Gene, Talk about being wrenched away from a state of serenity. I was wrenched and then some this morning when I glanced at Elizabeth Mitchell's amazing hairstyles. I'd wager a bet that Elizabeth is more powerful than a locomotive pulling a trainload of Viagra. Those gorgeous hairstyles make my memories want to leap tall buildings.

The Buddhist monk in your blog was not a fanatic. We cringe at something such as that because we fear pain and death.

Suicide is stigmatized and often could be avoided. There is plenty of beauty to be found in this life. But this man sacrificed himself to save others. That image brought the attention of the entire western civilization. He achieved his goal.

Buddhists believe in a transient existance. Currently you a simply a pattern of atoms, and electrical impulses. When you die these thing transfer into other forms of existance. So they are not far off even in scientific terms.

This man did not fear death or pain. He was peaceful and brave. His sacrifice was not in vain. If only more people understood...